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“What do people say about Me, who is the Son of Man? They answer Him: some say that I am either, others that I am Jeremiah” (cf. Matt. 16:13–14). They said this because, seeing His miracles, they could not at the same time understand His greatness, but some compared Him with Elijah for zeal for His Father’s house, others with Jeremiah for the sake of His holiness from the womb, others with John because of His baptism and the miracles of His birth, since (all) this was known. Just as His disciples were amazed (at Him), so those who saw Him had different opinions (about Him). “What are you saying about Me, what am I? Simon, the head and prince, said: You are Christ, the Son of the Living God. And he answered: Blessed are you, Simon... And the gates of hell will not prevail against you” (cf. Matt. 16:15-18), that is, that faith will not be destroyed. For who can destroy what the Lord builds, and who can restore what the Lord has cast down? The Assyrian 201 wanted to destroy the church that the Lord had created, but He destroyed the throne of his kingdom. So is Nicanor (2Mac 8:34–36). And Ahab wanted to build the overthrown city of Jericho, and his reign was overthrown. In creating His Church, the Lord created such a tower, the foundations of which could support everything that was built on them. As at the time when one tongue was divided into many, (the Lord destroyed the tower) so that people would not ascend to heaven (Gen. 11:4-8), (this is what prompted them to seek refuge not in the tower, but in righteousness, for the immeasurable abyss of the floods would not have caused them anything if they had sought refuge on the heights 202, but unrighteousness drowned (them), but repentance freed, that is, truth saved); just as, I say, their dispersion served as an obstacle to the (successful completion) of the earthly tower and long-term structure and to evasion of labor, so then the Savior Himself built for people a tower that leads to heaven, and a tree, the fruits of which are the medicine of life. “You are a stone” (cf. Matt. 16:18) - that stone that (the Lord) erected so that Satan would stumble on it. But when Peter said to the Lord: “Let this not be,...Lord!” (cf. Matt. 16:22), Satan wanted to oppose this stone to the Lord, so that He would stumble on it. We would not say that Satan thought (precisely) this way if He who knew (about this) did not discover this, saying: “Get away... Satan! you... are a temptation... to me! (Matthew 16:23). And the Lord took this stone and threw it away from Himself, so that the followers of Satan would stumble over it, as they “went back and were cast out on the earth” (cf. John 18:6). “Tell no one about Me that I am the Christ” (cf. Matt. 16:20), that is, not only in words, but in deeds and merits, show the truth about Me. Likewise, when he came down from the mountain, he commanded them: “Beware, and do not tell anyone about ... the vision that you saw, until the Son of Man rises from the dead” (cf. Matt. 17:9). “Behold... we are going up to Jerusalem, and all that is written about Me will be fulfilled, for the Son of Man must be led to the cross and put to death” (cf. Matt. 20:18–19, Luke 18:31–33). Satan returned to fight with the Lord through the mouth of Simon, the head of the community (disciples), 203 as he once did through the mouth of Eve. “Let this not happen to You,... Lord! He answered him: go away,... Satan” (cf. Matt. 16:22–23). Haven’t you (still) realized why I came to earth? For just as (having become) a baby laid in a manger, I brought joy to those born into this world, so it is fitting for me to descend into hell and comfort the dead righteous people who are there, who from eternity have been waiting for me and hoping to see me. “The prophets,” he says, “and the righteous, and kings desired to see (Me)” (cf. Matt. 13:17), and: “Abraham desired to see My day” (cf. John 8:56). So, I'll go down and see him. So, who else, except Satan alone, would not want to lead Me to the Cross for the liberation of the world? So, go away, “for you are not thinking about the things of God, but about the things of men” (cf. Matt. 16:23). After all, the fishermen were ignorant people, and their hearing was not refined by the prophetic speech. “There will be those who now stand before Me...here and will not taste death” (cf. Matt. 16:28) - in order to show that they will be taken alive into heaven. Then the Lord called to Himself Elijah 204, who was taken up into heaven, and Moses, who was brought back to life, and three witnesses from His (own) messengers, who were pillars (Gal. 2:9), that is, they held the testimony of (His) Kingdom. And Simon, in his ignorance, showed with words great knowledge, for he knew Moses and Elijah, just as John, through the Spirit, recognized the Lord who had come to him, since he himself testified: “I did not know Him” (John 1:31). So, if the Spirit revealed to them 205 (this), then the Spirit Himself through the mouth of Simon said something that Simon did not know 206. In a similar way he says (and now) to make three tabernacles for Christ, Moses and Elijah, although in these words freedom is added to the inspiration of the Spirit 207. Further, by the fact that before His death the appearance of His face changed, He taught them that although He remains one and the same, nevertheless (can) change, so that they would know that He remains the same, although He changes. Thus, He prepared them in advance so that they would not doubt Him when He rose from the dead transfigured. But if the transfiguration signifies the Kingdom that He received after the resurrection, then why did He not appear in this (transformed) form after the resurrection? This happened because they could not look at Him, and so that they would know that they too would have to be transformed like (Him). And He called those two men (to Himself) in order to better believe in the resurrection of life, which will happen through Him at the end of the world. Either, like Moses, they will rise after death, or, like Elijah, the living will ascend to Him, for He is the Lord of heaven and hell. When Moses and Elijah appeared, Simon said: “If you want,... Lord, we will make three tabernacles here” (Matthew 17:4). He said this because he saw that this mountain was free and calm from the oppression of the scribes, and this pleased him. The pleasant smell of the Kingdom (Christ), fragrant, reached his sense of smell and delighted him. He saw the glory of the Lord in the place of dishonor and, rejoicing that the Lord and His disciples were with Moses and Elijah, wished that He would remain longer away from Caiaphas and Herod. As when he said: “Let this not happen to You” (cf. Matt. 16:22), and in this also case he said sympathetically: “Let us make three tabernacles here” (Matthew 17:4). “I did not know what I said” (cf. Luke 9:33), since the Lord had to ascend to the Cross; or (because) since the tabernacles were prepared for them not here, but in the world to come. “Make,” he says, “friends... for yourself, who will receive you into their eternal abode” (cf. Luke 16:9). Next. He did not know what he was saying, and because in the number of tabernacles he equated Christ with Moses and Elijah; therefore, a Divine voice from heaven enlightened him, saying: “This is My beloved Son” (Matthew 17:5), so that the Lord could be distinguished from His servants. Why did Moses and Elijah appear to Him? Since when he asked them: “What do people say about Me, who am I?” They said to Him: some say that You are or I, others that I am Jeremiah, others that I am one of the prophets” (cf. Matt. 16:13-14), but in order to show them that He is not Elijah and not one of the prophets, Moses and Elijah appeared to them, so that they would know that He is the Lord of the prophets. Before His death He transformed His face on the mountain, so that they would not doubt the transformation of His face after death and so that they would know that He who changed the clothes with which He was clothed could revive the body with which He was clothed. For He who gave the body the unapproachable glory of the soul can also revive it after death, which all people will taste. But if Christ is an alien God 209, then why did Moses and Elijah talk with Him? Was it not Christ who called Moses to life and Elijah from heaven? And so, he brought them from the previous time of the Righteous One 210. If, by force, He brought Elijah down from heaven, then He is not good, since He kidnapped Elijah from the arm of the Righteous One and brought him as a witness to Himself. And if the Good One, without (the knowledge of) the Righteous One, sought out Moses and took possession of him, then he became guilty of theft, because he stole from the tomb and brought (to the light) the bones that the Righteous One had hidden from the sight of people (Deut. 34:6). And when a voice appeared from heaven: “This is my beloved Son... Listen to him” (Matthew 17:5), then where was the Righteous One then? Or was he afraid and hid himself and did not show himself at the voice of Togo 211? Or did this voice of the Alien pass unnoticed, so that the Righteous One did not hear (it)? But behold, in the third heaven, He is, as they say, and the Righteous One is also in heaven. How did this voice and these words pass by Him, so that He did not notice them, and if He did notice, then why did He remain silent about all this glorification that was announced about Him? “Listen to him, and you will live” (cf. Matthew 17:5). So, anyone who listens to someone else's voice will die. Or, perhaps, They 212 entered into some kind of agreement between themselves, so that at one time one said: “I am from beginning to end, and there is no other either before Me or after Me,” and at another time the other said: “This is My beloved Son... Listen to Him” (Matthew 17:5)? “And when they came down... from the mountain, he gave them a commandment, saying: Beware and do not tell anyone about this vision that you saw” (cf. Matt. 17:9). Why? Because he knew that they would not believe them, but would consider them mad and would say: or perhaps you also know where Elijah came from? - and, behold, Moses was buried, and no one was present at his tomb - and from here blasphemy and temptation would arise. He says rather another time: “stay until you receive strength” (cf. Acts 1:4), because then, if you tell them this and they don’t believe it, you will raise the dead to their shame and to your glory. And one more thing. “Be calm,” he says, “until the tombs are opened and the righteous of the New and Old Testaments come out (from them) and appear in Jerusalem..., the city of the great King” (cf. Luke 24:49); after this they will believe that the One who called them to life also raised Moses. Many righteous people appeared from the underworld at the voice of the Lord; many came instead of one. And if the dead, having heard Him, appeared, how much more should Elijah live? Therefore he said: “Tell no one until the Son of Man rises from the dead” (cf. Matthew 17:9). So that they would not say that the Lord had led His disciples into error by deception, they went around preaching that Moses and Elijah talked with Him. Moses received the law on the mountain, and Elijah appeared to avenge the law with his zeal, as it is written: “You have done wrong to me” (cf. Matt. 17:12). Further, since both of them possessed nothing, both lovers appeared together to the One who loved them both equally. Also, God made their names equal to each other, saying: “Remember the law of Moses my servant” (cf. Joshua 1:13), and in another place: “Behold... according to I have sent you Elijah the prophet” (cf. Mal.4:5). And that after six days he took them and led them up the mountain (Matthew 17:1), then this mysteriously signifies six thousand years. Why didn’t he take all the disciples with him? Because among them was Judas, a stranger to the Kingdom, who was unworthy to lead him there, but he should not have been left alone, since due to the election of the One who called him to this position, he seemed perfect to people. The Lord chose him when his secret plan was still unknown. After all, if his unrighteousness were known, then his disciples, his comrades, would know about it. The Lord knew that he would be a traitor, and when he said: “One of you will betray Me” (Matthew 26:21), and began to say to him: “Here he is” (cf. Matthew 26:25), then he separated him from the rest of his comrades. But why did you choose him, or because you hated him? Why else did he make him the manager and bearer of the wallet? Firstly, then, to show His perfect love and the grace of His mercy; secondly, to teach His Church that although there are false teachers in it, the teaching title itself 213 is true, for the place of Judas the traitor did not remain idle; finally, to teach that although there are bad stewards, the rule of His economy is true. Thus, the Lord washed Judas’ feet, but after washing, he rose up (and) with the same feet went to His murderers. The Lord kissed him (Judas), who with a kiss gave a sign of death to those who were looking for Him, and extended bread to that hand, which, having stretched out, accepted the price for Him and sold Him to the murderers. “A prophet must not perish outside of Jerusalem” (cf. Luke 13:33), which is consistent with the following saying: “you cannot at all bury your Passover sacrifice wherever you want, but only in the place that the Lord your God chooses for Him to dwell there” (cf. Deut. 12:8, 11); just as the apostle testifies: “Our Passover was sacrificed to her... Christ” (cf. 1 Cor. 5:7) 214 - in order to teach that Israel had (only) an image, and the truth (was revealed) through Jesus. “O perverse generation... and faithless” (Matthew 17:17). He says this because the father of the boy 215 reproached His disciples, saying: “they could not heal him” (Matthew 17:16), because he thought that they were not yet sufficiently experienced in the art of their teacher. The teacher came and took the disciples and placed them, as it were, among the waves. So, we came to find out from Him: “Why couldn’t we heal?” (cf. Matthew 17:19). Their healing was prevented by unbelieving blasphemers. “This one,” they said, “casts out demons by the power of Beelzebub, the prince of demons” (cf. Luke 11:15). And they said to this man: His disciples are not yet fully trained in His art, for otherwise for what reason did they not heal? Therefore he answered: “Oh, the generation... corrupted!” (Matthew 17:17). And for this purpose, he immediately chose and sent seventy-two (disciples) in different directions, who miraculously healed them, in order to expose them of the falsity of their opinion. “How long will I be with you?” (Matthew 17:17). For when they kill Him, they will see that His name does signs and wonders. Since He did not act out of experience in art, He said to that man: “to him who believes, all things are possible,” and to them: “Because of your unbelief” (cf. Matt. 17:20). And in order to lift the depressed mood of His disciples, he said: “I tell you, unclean, deaf... and dumb” (cf. Mark 9:25), in order to teach that everything is available to Him, as God. This happened not because it was easier to do this than to lead people to faith, but in order to somewhat prevent the blasphemers from laughing at their disciples. Even to this day, His disciples did not yet firmly believe in Him 216. “Come out,... step back from it and do not enter it again” (cf. Mark 9:25) - these words testify to the freedom of the demon. Since (the demon) wanted to return to him later, (the Lord) tied him up, saying: “Do not dare to enter here anymore” (cf. Mark 9:25). As a warning, he said to Simon: “Who do the kings of the earth take taxes from...? from sons... or... strangers? (Matthew 17:25). Since (the collectors of didrachmas) came for the purpose of finding a pretext to accuse Him, they did not collect this (duty) from everyone. But this is how we reasoned within ourselves: perhaps you will say that the Teacher will not give taxes, and thus we will treat Him as a rebel; if he gives, then in this case he will be considered an outsider. For although the Levites were considered outsiders, since the Lord was their inheritance, they were like sons and no one exacted anything from them. Thus the Lord explained to Simon: the scribes and Pharisees appeared, looking from you, Simon, for a pretext to tempt us. For they did not compare Him with the priests. But the Lord did not give them the reason to accuse Him, which they were looking for, and acted in such a way that those who collected this duty showed that He was different from all people. At the same time, He taught Simon that the Levites do not give, because they are exempt from this duty 217. “Lest... you give them offense” (cf. Matt. 17:27), that is, so that they don’t resent the Pharisees and destroy (them) when you make it obvious that they are trying to create a reason for a quarrel. And he added: “Go to the sea and cast a net there” (cf. Matt. 17:27). Since they consider Me a stranger, let the sea teach them that I am not only a Priest, but also a King. So, go, and you also pay (the fee), as if one of the strangers. When, therefore, Simon agreed to pay (the duty) and, taking the net, went to throw it into the sea, and they also departed with him. And when he pulled out a fish that had a stater in its mouth, a sign of dominion, those proud were exposed and ashamed, because they did not believe that the Levite was the One about whom the sea and the fish testified that He was the King and the Priest. So, the appearance of this supreme High Priest was recognized by all creation, and all things hastened to bring tribute to Him, each in its own way. The Highest sent Him greetings through Gabriel, and the Powers of Heaven through the star; The pagans presented the magi, and the prophets, who had long since fallen silent, sent out scribes who said: “From the city of Bethlehem a king must arise” (cf. Matt. 2:6). The stater, which was cast in the throat of a fish and in the waters received the image of the king, was for those seeking quarrels and annoyance proof that the obedience of the sea was addressed to this stranger. “They came and came to ask Him: ... is it permissible for anyone to let his wife go... He answered them and said: it is not permissible. ... They said to Him: ... Moses allowed us; so (tell me), why is it not permissible? Moses, - he says, - out of the hardness of your hearts, allowed you, but from the beginning of creation this did not happen" (cf. Matt. 19: 3-4, 7-8). Thus, from this one The commandments are clear that it was necessary to abolish what was established by Moses due to the hardness of the people, because the hard-hearted people were replaced by a people who loved the faith of Abraham. After all, what was said (previously): “Do not kill... do not commit adultery” (Matt. 19:18), even before the law, (all) this was preached, and through the Gospel began to be fulfilled. For all the commandments of the law, which for well-known reasons were. given to them and introduced into them, ceased not so that the old (at the same time) was destroyed, but in order for the new to be established. “Ten drachmas... a hundred sheep” (Luke 15:4, 8). He has departed from the perfection of truth, who, as a result of sins, has fallen into error. It was with those who lived under the law that I made this comparison. Or the one who, as a result of sins, fell into error 218 has withdrawn from the truth of nature. Or he compared the image of Adam to a drachma. Why is there more joy (in heaven) about sinners who repent than about the righteous who have not sinned? Because joy usually comes after sadness. So, since there is sorrow among those who have sinned, let there be joy (for them) when they repent. “It was necessary,” he says, “to rejoice... that your brother... was dead and came to life, and was brought back to life” (cf. Luke 15:32). But both joy and sadness are feelings of the soul; How (can they) be sad and rejoice in heaven? And (namely), “sorrow in heaven” is called the fact that (sinners) are condemned for sins, so that we too may be struck with sorrow. For if our sins sadden the Angels, how much more should we ourselves repent of them? The following words also have the same meaning: “I grieve that I created... man” (cf. Gen. 6:7). This is followed by another parable about two sons and brothers. “And when the younger son... squandered his substance” (cf. Luke 15:13). The instruction offered in these words is that for him who turns with all his heart to a better way of life, there will be joy in heaven, etc. Next is another parable about a steward (Luke 16:1-9), whom the slaves accused before the master. It is amazing that the unrighteous wisdom of a sinner's steward is praised before the Lord; after all, in his sins he squandered his former treasures, unrighteously and treacherously forgave debts that he later reduced. However, he was praised because through what did not belong to him, he acquired and gained something that could become his property, that is, friends and providers. But Adam, through his own, gained something that was not his, that is, thorns along with sorrows. Buy, he says, for yourselves, children of Adam, with these transitory (goods) that do not belong to you, what belongs to you (and) that does not pass away (is not exhausted). “If my brother sins against me, then... how many times should I forgive him? Isn’t it enough up to seven times? .. He says to him... up to seventy times seventy times” (cf. Matt. 18:21-22). But 219 let Peter yield to anger only one day, so that anger would not prevail for a long time (in a little time). For anger is harmful both for his friends and for his enemies, and all evil, kindled by him, burns, as if from (some) evil treasury (deriving strength for itself), and in its boldness undauntedly oversteps boundaries in order to take possession of the whole day. Therefore, in order to prevent (evil), the Physician blocked (him) the way and gave him the whole day to pacify him, saying: “even up to seventy times” (cf. Matthew 18:22). that there is a (certain) measure for mercy and a (certain) number for good deeds, and that this number has its own days and hours, then the Lord convicted him and corrected him, since he established the number of forgiveness exceeding the number of crimes. For who will sin so many times in (one) day? And so that Peter, convicted from this side, does not expose the Lord by accusing him that the hope for (such) forgiveness will become for us a reason for (new) sins, for this it is added that the day will soon end and is hastening to the end; for the setting of the sun puts an end to the day and destroys all evidence 220 . So, our invisible Light taught us to turn away from anger while the visible light remains, so that this light at the end (of the world) would not be a witness (against us), and the sun would not rise against us at the end of life. Since our will conceives from any external stimulation and, most often, immediately moves towards crimes, and gives birth and produces fruit equal to the seed that it has received, therefore the apostle says: “Let not the sun go down on your anger; and do not give place to the devil” (Eph. 4:26–27), as if teaching this: what the devil has sown in us must ripen, but while the seeds are weak, we will pluck them out and destroy them before they bear fruit. After all, murder does not happen suddenly, but (it) is preceded by ill will, since the enemy cannot carry out deeds without his weapon. Just as the Lord took care of His flock in all (other) needs, so He consoled those who lead a hermit’s life in this sad situation, saying: “Where there is one, there am I,” so that none of the hermits would grieve, because He is our joy and Himself is present with us. “And where there are two, ..there I will also be” (cf. Matt. 18:20), since His mercy and goodness overshadow us. And when the three of us are together, we seem to unite into the Church, which is the perfect Body of Christ and a visual image of Him. He says: “Their angels in heaven... see the face of My Father” (Matthew 18:10), that is, their prayers. And it happened that (some) who came “told Him about the Galileans... whose blood... Pilate mixed with their sacrifices” (Luke 13:1), that is, on that feast of the reign of Herod, when he cut off the head of John with the sword. Precisely, since John was killed unrighteously and contrary to the law, Pilate gathered an army and, sending (him), destroyed everyone who took part in that feast. And since Herod could do nothing else, for the dishonor inflicted on him, he killed all the leaders of Pilate’s army and was angry with him until the day of judgment of the Lord, which (the day of judgment) served as the reason for their reconciliation (Luke 23: 7-12). “Pilate mixed... the blood... of them... with their sacrifices” (Luke 13:1), because the Roman authorities forbade them to offer burnt offerings and sacrifices. Pilate found out that they had broken the law and offered burnt offerings and sacrifices, so he killed them at that time on the spot (of the crime), from here he mixed... their blood... with their sacrifices” (Luke 13:1). Or they 221 came to tempt Christ, like those who exacted the tax. For they wanted to know whether He would not approve of their bloodshed (which happened) because of their sacrifices, and thus would be against the law and at one with the pagans, or would protect the victims, in which case they would accuse Him before Pilate for opposing the command of the Romans. Another parable: “A man planted a fig tree in his vineyard... and said to the vinedresser” (cf. Luke 13:6–7). This vinedresser signified the law, for the law (Christ) meant. “Behold, ... three and a year ago, I come to seek the fruit of this fig tree” (cf. Luke 13:7), - he said this because of the three captivities in which the Israeli captives were taken and punished, but not corrected, “because,” he says, “I struck your children in vain: and they did not accept admonition” (cf. Jer. 2:30). And to show that even after that he remained generous to her 222, for this, when it had already been said to the vinedresser: “cut it down... The vinedresser answered: leave it for another year” (cf. Luke 13: 7–8). The Lord agreed to continue to be generous towards them, which means the time of seventy weeks. For those three years 223 ended for them with the time of their return (from captivity); in the same way, “one year” (cf. Luke 13:8) - speaks of the time that preceded the appearance of Christ, since their lot was decided by the sentence of this year. The fruit of faith was required from them, and what was given (to them) did not turn out. In this case, the saying (of the prophet) was fulfilled: “I sought... they had a husband, a restorer of ruins, and they did not have one” (cf. Ezek. 22:30). Three years signify the time 224 in which He showed them that He was the Savior. And that He wanted to destroy the fig tree, this action of His is similar to another, more ancient one, when the Father said to Moses: “Leave Me... and I will destroy them from before Me” (cf. Ex. 32:10, Deut. 9:13), - with which words he gave him a reason to beg Him. Likewise, in this place (first) he declared to the vinedresser that the fig tree must be destroyed, and then the vinedresser offered his prayer and the merciful God showed His mercy. If this year it does not bear fruit, it will be destroyed by the vinedresser. It was not for the sake of vengeance that he cut down the fig tree, as Moses did, who, after he had prayed and was heard, said: “The day of their destruction is at hand, and that which must come upon them is coming” (cf. Deut. 32:35). If the burdens of the scribes were unbearable, yet their words were not heavy, and if their words were unclean, yet their fingers were sanctified for the sake of one finger (Matthew 23:3-4, Luke 11:46), as the vinedresser, for whose sake the lord of the vineyard deigned to give a respite, thought about the fig tree. Having humbled Himself before the vinedresser, who wanted to point out to Him the good natural properties of the fig tree, the Lord did this for the purpose of testing, for the Lord already knew about this before. And when he came and after three years was looking for fruit, he did this in order to test the knowledge of the vinedresser. We do not say that those people were tares, because the Lord can choose them too, (we do not say that others are the holy seed, for He can crush these too 225). “I will not go on this holiday” (cf. John 7:8), that is, (I will not go) to the Cross. He did not say: “on this feast,” but: “on this feast.” “Because His brothers did not believe in Him... They said to Him, “No one... does anything in secret” (cf. John 7:5, 4) and so on. Because they wanted to betray Him, therefore He hid the truth from them, saying: “I will not go away” (John 7:8). And in order to make it clear that they wanted to betray Him and put Him to death, For this reason he secretly came to this holiday. “Why are you seeking to kill Me?” (John 7:19). Scripture uses three methods (teaching) about our Lord: firstly, (teaching) about Divinity alone, secondly, about Divinity and humanity in union, thirdly, about humanity alone. “In the beginning was the Word... and... God” (John 1:1), - this is a way (of teaching) about the Divine. And “no one,” he says, “has ascended into heaven except the Son of Man who came down from heaven” (John 3:13), which is a way of teaching in conjunction. And the words: “Why are you seeking to kill Me?.. a man who tells you the truth” (cf. John 7:19, 8:40) are the essence of a way of teaching about humanity. King of Assyria (2 Kings 18, 2 Kings 19). The hills here are the mountainous country where the descendants of Seth lived, while the Cainites lived on the plains. The thought of Saint Ephraim is that if people followed the pious customs of the Sethites, they would not be threatened by any flood. 1Moesin: caput Ecclesiae. These words begin the explanation of the Gospel narrative about the Transfiguration of the Lord (Matthew 17:6–9). John the Baptist and Simon Peter. Of course, Peter’s confession (Matthew 16:15–18). Those. Peter's own judgment; This refers to the words of this apostle: “If you want, let us make ourselves three tabernacles” (cf. Matt. 17:4). Those. God of the Old Testament and the Jews; With these words Saint Ephrem begins a refutation of Marcion's teaching. This is what Marcion called the God of the Old Testament, in contrast to the God of the New Testament, whom he called “Good,” “Alien,” and “Benefactor.” According to the Synodal translation (Russian): “Our Passover, Christ, was sacrificed for us” 1 Cor. 5:7). Those. demoniac, about whom see: Matthew 17:16. Wed John 7:3–5; the context of the speech is this: the Lord Himself had to protect His disciples from ridicule, since they did not yet have perfect faith in Him. According to another reading: “because they were poor.” The holy author teaches that the lost sheep here signifies either a Jew who has deviated from the perfect righteousness commanded by the law, or a pagan who has deviated from the law of natural truth. To understand the following reasoning of the holy father, you need to keep in mind Luke 17:4, where it is said: “if (your brother) sins against you seven times a day, and seven times a day turns back and says: I repent, forgive him.” Christ, reminding us that the time of our life is short and fragile, thereby warned us not to sin lightly, in the hope of forgiveness. Those. who spoke about the Galileans. Those. fig tree, signifying the people of Israel. In this place, Saint Ephraim explains that three years means the time before the return from captivity in Babylon, and one year, like seventy weeks, means the time from the return from captivity until the appearance of Christ. From here begins a different interpretation of the same parable. In these words, the holy father rejects those heretics who called some people evil by nature, and others good, also by nature. You might be interested in: